Fernando Alonso back in the championship hunt
Winning consecutive world championships is the sign of a great Formula One driver.
Fernando Alonso is exactly that, and although some may not like him, he is no doubt one of the most consistent racers on the grid, being world champion in 2005 and 2006 in the glory days of Renault.
The man now driving for Ferrari is part of a five-way battle for this year’s world championship, and he trails leader Mark Webber of Red Bull by 20 points. In his first season for the Scuderia, he hasn’t been at his best.
From the opening-race victory of the season in Bahrain, he suffered an engine failure in Malaysia, a crash in Monte Carlo, low-points finishes in Turkey and Britain and bad luck at the European and Canadian Grands Prix. He was in danger of falling away, but now the controversial win in Germany - where Ferrari instructed teammate Felipe Massa to let Alonso through and were fined $100,000 for team orders - and grabbing second spot in the last race in Hungary has put him back into contention.
The 29-year-old Spaniard insists he will close the gap to the leaders with seven races remaining. “It only took us two normal races to be fully back in contention for the title,” he said.
“It's true we are still behind in the classification and it is always better to be in front, but I am convinced that in the final sprint, by which I mean the last two or three races, we will be closer to the top than we are now,” said Alonso.
Out of the five contenders to win the championship this year, Webber and his Red Bull teammate Sebastian Vettel are yet to win a title. McLaren drivers Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button were champions in 2008 and 2009 respectively. Alonso believes the likes of himself and the two Britons will show their experience when it matters most.
“Maybe, Hamilton, Button and myself, who have already won a title, will tackle the final rush in a calmer way, having already experienced something similar. Percentage chance? I'd say 50 per cent, which is the normal state of affairs,” he said.
Ferrari are the closest challengers to the blisteringly-quick Red Bulls, and Alonso has seen the confidence in his team grow over the last few races. “After a few unlucky races, which went badly for various reasons, we are now on the right road. The car is much improved and so that makes me more optimistic and has seen the whole team grow in confidence.”
Spa-Francorchamps is the next destination for the Belgian Grand Prix and Ferrari will have more developments to make to their car. “In Spa, we will have a few more things and we hope they help us progress still more. The others will do the same, which means we will have to be better than them and quicker in terms of development work,” said Alonso.
Alonso has a tough time to try and get on level terms with Red Bull, and the situation is set to be made even more difficult as Ferrari face a World Motor Sport Council hearing in September, days before their home grand prix in Monza, Italy. Alonso is confident the team won’t face further punishments.
“We have to await the decision with confidence, hoping for a positive outcome. We drivers and the engineers have the task of staying focussed on the car and on our work, trying to get the results on track,” he said.
Let’s see if the Red Bulls will be beaten by experience.
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